Wing Commander Movie Night: Dune

The Wing Commander movie club greatly enjoyed our trip back to 1970 with Apollo 13; it's a movie that comes together so perfectly it feels preordained rather than directed. This week we'll be traveling further into the future for another outer space adventure… but one that's anything but neutral about its director! The next film will be the 1984 version of Dune by David Lynch. You can join us this Friday via Discord to watch along.

A beloved IP meets a director who has his own, distinct vision separate from any of the fans. The results… something no one can quite explain. Am I talking about Wing Commander or Dune? But beyond that similarity, our first in game reference is a pretty clear one: in Privateer when you try to communicate with New Constantinople you can choose a line of Paul's from Dune: "My name is a killing word". Why? It's not entirely clear...

We also recently did a deep dive into in-universe references to sand worms, something that will always go back to the original Dune novel. You can find that article here.

Further Dune references are just as likely to be to the books, but they're worth mentioning! Privateer 2 names one of its three star systems (you know, from the Tri-System!) Irrulan after Dune's princess.

And there's Frank Herbert, author of Dune, on the Wing Commander universe map!

And is it really movie club without a little more Jurgen Prochnow? Here he plays Duke Leto Atreides!

Where can I find a copy of the movie for the watch party?

Dune is available for rent or purchase on the standard streaming services. If you would like a physical copy, the movie was released on UHD in 2021 and remains in print around the world. It is also currently streaming on Netflix. A copy is available on the Internet Archive. Please note that we will be watching the theatrical cut rather than the dramatically different TV cut. If you are not able to locate a copy please stop by the Discord and ping a CIC staff member before Friday's showing.

How do we watch the movie together?

It's pretty low tech! Simply join the Wing Commander CIC Discord on Friday and we will be chatting (in text) along with the film in the main channel. Everyone who wants to join in should bring their own copy and we will count down to play them together at 10 PM EST. Everyone is welcome and we encourage you to join in the conversation; sharing your thoughts helps make the experience better for everyone!